Optical signal measurement device

ABSTRACT

A device connects to a male network connector of a network conduit, and connects to a female network connector of the network conduit. The female network connector is capable of communicating with the male network connector. The device also measures outputs of the male network connector and the female network connector.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Communications networks (e.g., optical communications networks) maycontain several network conduits (e.g., optical fibers) that may need tobe tested on a daily basis. An output (e.g., optical power) of a networkconduit may be measured by measuring a connection point of the networkconduit. A connection point may include a male connector interconnectedwith a female connector. Technicians typically need to measure opticalpower in both directions of a given connection point because many timestechnicians cannot determine whether a direction of the connection pointis a transmit direction or a receive direction. For example, the labelsfor the transmit direction or the receive direction may be incorrect, orthere may be incorrect connectors for the connection point.

To test a connection point, the male and female connectors may bedisconnected and accessed with a measurement device (e.g., an opticalpower meter). Most existing optical power meters only have a singlefemale receiver head for receiving male connectors. Typically, the maleconnector of the network may be provided within the single femalereceiver head of the power meter, and the power meter may measure theoptical power output to or by the male network connector.

To measure the optical power of the female network connector, a jumperthat includes the same type of connector as the female network connectormay need to be located. One end of the jumper may be connected to thefemale network connector. The other end of the jumper may be providedwithin the single female receiver head of the power meter, and the powermeter may measure the optical power output provided to or by the femalenetwork connector.

Thus, there may be several steps involved in measuring a singleconnection point of a network conduit, and the procedure may be verytime consuming. Many times the measured optical power output of thefirst measured connector (i.e., the male network connector or the femalenetwork connector) may be forgotten by a technician prior to measuringthe second measured connector, requiring the technician to duplicatemeasurement of the first connector.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIGS. 1A and 1B depict an exemplary device in which systems and methodsdescribed herein may be implemented;

FIGS. 2A and 2B depict exemplary pulley arrangements of the device ofFIGS. 1A and 1B;

FIGS. 3A and 3B depict another exemplary device in which systems andmethods described herein may be implemented;

FIGS. 4A and 4B depict still another exemplary device in which systemsand methods described herein may be implemented;

FIG. 5 is a diagram of exemplary components of the exemplary devicesshown in FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 3A-4B;

FIGS. 6A and 6B depict exemplary measurement of an optical signal(s)with the exemplary device shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B; and

FIG. 7 is a flowchart of an exemplary process capable of being performedby the exemplary devices shown in FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 3A-4B.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings.The same reference numbers in different drawings may identify the sameor similar elements. Also, the following detailed description does notlimit the invention.

Systems and methods described herein may provide an optical signalmeasurement device that includes two optical detectors for measuring twooptical signals simultaneously. For example, in one implementation, afemale receiver head of the optical signal measurement device may beused to measure an optical signal provided to or by a male connector ofa network conduit. A male connector connected to the optical signalmeasurement device may be used to measure a female connector of thenetwork conduit. The systems and methods may simplify the opticalmeasurement procedure to a single step, which may save time, and may beused in various connection scenarios. The systems and methods also maynot require the technician to remember measured values or to find ajumper, and may permit quicker identification of a transmission problemin a network conduit.

Although the systems and methods described herein relate to opticalconduits, in other implementations, the systems and methods may be usedin conjunction with other type of conduits. A “conduit,” as the term isused herein, is to be broadly construed to include any electrical cable,optical cable, telephone cable, coaxial cable, copper conductors, orother like media used to transmit and/or receive data or informationfrom one point to another.

The expression “optically communicates,” as used herein, may refer toany connections, coupling, link, or other similar mechanism by whichoptical signals that may be carried by one optical component may beimparted to a communicating optical component. For example, “opticallycommunicating” devices may not necessarily be directly connected to oneanother and may be separated by intermediate optical components ordevices.

FIGS. 1A and 1B depict an exemplary device 100 in which systems andmethods described herein may be implemented. FIG. 1A depicts an externalfront view of device 100, and FIG. 1B depicts a partial internal frontview of device 100. Device 100 may include any device used to measureproperties of a conduit or another type of computation or communicationdevice, a thread or process running on one of these devices, and/or anobject executable by one of these devices. For example, in oneimplementation, device 100 may include an optical power meter thatmeasures a strength or power of an optical signal provided through aconduit. In other implementations, device 100 may include a photometer,a radiometer, etc.

As shown in FIG. 1A, device 100 may include a variety of components,such as a housing 105, control buttons 110, a display 115, a femalereceiver head 120, and/or a receiver head 125 through which a maleconnector 130 may extend from and/or retract into housing 105. Housing105 may protect the components of device 100 from outside elements.Control buttons 110 may permit a user to interact with device 100 tocause device 100 to perform one or more operations. Display 115 mayprovide visual information to the user. For example, display 115 mayprovide information regarding a measurement result (e.g., “RESULT 1” or“RESULT 2”) of female receiver head 120, a measurement result (e.g.,“RESULT 1” or “RESULT 2”) of male connector 130, etc.

Female receiver head 120 may be a point of attachment for a networkconduit (not shown) and may be a point of entry for a male networkconnector (not shown) provided at one end of a network conduit (notshown). Female receiver head 120 may receive a variety of male networkconnectors. For example, female head receiver 120 may receive a maleoptical fiber connector (e.g., Local Connector (LC), Ferrule Connector(FC), Straight Tip (ST), Standard Connector (SC), biconic, EnterpriseSystems Connection (ESCON), Fiber Connectivity (FICON),Fiber-Distributed Data Interface (FDDI), loopback, Opti-Jack, MechanicalTransfer Registered Jack (MT-RJ), D4, MTP, MU, SMA, etc. typeconnectors), a male electrical connector (e.g., a coaxial cableconnector), etc. Female receiver head 120 may permit measurement bydevice 100 of an optical signal provided to or by the male networkconnector.

Receiver head 125 may provide an opening in housing 105 of device 100 topermit male connector 130 to extend from and/or retract into housing105. Male connector 130 may connect to a female network connector of anetwork conduit (not shown) formerly connected to a male networkconnector (not shown). Male connector 130 may include a variety of maleconnectors. For example, male connector 130 may include a male opticalfiber connector (e.g., Local Connector (LC), Ferrule Connector (FC),Straight Tip (ST), Standard Connector (SC), biconic, Enterprise SystemsConnection (ESCON), Fiber Connectivity (FICON), Fiber-Distributed DataInterface (FDDI), loopback, Opti-Jack, Mechanical Transfer RegisteredJack (MT-RJ), D4, MTP, MU, SMA, etc. type connectors), a male electricalconnector (e.g., a coaxial cable connector), etc. Male connector 130 maypermit measurement by device 100 of an optical signal provided to or bythe female network connector.

As shown in FIG. 1B, device 100 may further include an optical detector135 corresponding to female receiver head 120, a latch gear 140, ajumper 145 coupled to male connector 130, a pulley 150, and/or anoptical detector 155 corresponding to male connector 130.

Optical detectors 135 and 155 may optically communicate with the malenetwork connector (not shown) and the female network connector (notshown), respectively, in order to measure the power of optical signalsprovided to or by these network devices. Optical detectors 135 and 155may include a variety of detectors, such as photon detectors (i.e.,detectors where light energy may interact with electrons in thedetectors' material and may generate free electrons), thermal detectors(i.e., detectors that may respond to heat energy delivered by light),etc. Photon detectors may further include photoconductive detectors(i.e., incoming light may produce free electrons which can carryelectrical current so that the electrical conductivity of the detectormaterial may change as a function of the intensity of the incidentlight), photovoltaic detectors (a voltage may be generated if opticalenergy strikes the device), photoemissive detectors (incident photonsmay release electrons from the surface of the detector material, and thefree electrons may be collected in an external circuit), etc. In otherimplementations, optical detectors 135 and 155 may be replaced withelectrical detectors, e.g., if the network devices provide electricalsignals instead of optical signals.

Optical detector 135 may be coupled to female receiver head 120, andoptical detector 155 may be coupled to pulley 150 and jumper 145, asshown in FIG. 1B. Optical detectors 135 and 155 may provide the measuredpower of the optical signals to other components of device 100. Forexample, in one implementation, optical detector 135 may provide themeasured power of the male network connector to display 115, and display115 may provide visual information (e.g., “RESULT 1” or “RESULT 2”)indicating the measured power. Additionally or alternatively, opticaldetector 155 may provide the measured power of the female networkconnector to display 115, and display 115 may provide visual information(e.g., “RESULT 1” or “RESULT 2”) indicating the measured power. In otherimplementations, optical detectors 135 and 155 may provide the measuredpower of the optical signals to processing logic of device 100, and theprocessing logic may compare, perform statistics on, transmit, etc. themeasured power of the optical signals.

Latch gear 140 may include a mechanism that retains jumper 145 at adesired location. For example, latch gear 140 may frictionally engagejumper 145, and may prevent jumper 145 from retracting through receiverhead 125. A retracting or rewinding force may be applied to jumper 145via a spring-loaded mechanism provided in pulley 150, as describedbelow. In other implementations, latch gear 140 may be replaced withother mechanisms capable of retaining jumper 145 at a desired location.

Jumper 145 may be coupled at one end to male connector 130, and may becoupled at another end to optical detector 155. Jumper 145 may include aconduit for communicating data or information from male connector 130 tooptical detector 155. For example, in one implementation, jumper 145 mayinclude an optical fiber that communicates optical signals received bymale connector 130 to optical detector 155. In other implementations,jumper 145 may include an electrical cable that communicates electricalsignals received by male connector 130 to an electrical detector.

Pulley 150 may provide a mechanism to rewind jumper 145 and/or maleconnector 130 if not in use. Additional details of pulley 150 areprovided below in connection with FIGS. 2A and 2B.

Although FIGS. 1A and 1B show exemplary components of device 100, inother implementations, device 100 may contain fewer or additionalcomponents that may provide optical signal measurement of multipleconnectors. For example, although FIGS. 1A and 1B show two opticaldetectors for device 100, in other implementations, device 100 mayinclude more than two optical detectors. In still other implementations,device 100 may include additional components such as a speaker toprovide audible information to a user of device 100, a microphone toreceive audible information from the user, a camera to enable the userto capture and/or store video and/or images (e.g., pictures). In stillfurther implementations, one or more components of device 100 mayperform the tasks performed by other components of device 100.

FIGS. 2A and 2B depict exemplary arrangements of pulley 150 and othercomponents of device 100. As shown in the first exemplary arrangement ofFIG. 2A, pulley 150 may include a reel portion 200, a fixed shaft 205,an axis 210 of shaft 205, conductive contacts 215, conductive portions220 surrounding shaft 205, conductive wires 225, wires 230 supplyingpower to optical detector 155, and/or a spring-loaded mechanism 235. Asfurther shown in FIG. 2A, optical detector 155 may connect to reelportion 200 of pulley 150, and may optically communicate with jumper145.

Reel portion 200 may include a mechanism (e.g., a cylinder) around whichlengths of another material (e.g., jumper 145) may be wound for storage.For example, in one implementation, reel portion 200 may include acylindrical core and walls on the sides to retain the material (e.g.,jumper 145) wound around the core. The size of reel portion 200 maydepend on a variety of factors. For example, reel portion 200 may besized to fit within housing 105, may be sized to permit an entire lengthof jumper 145 to be stored, etc.

Reel portion 200 may rotatably connect to shaft 205, and may rotateabout axis 210 of shaft 205. For example, reel portion 200 may rotate inone direction to wind jumper 145, and may rotate in an oppositedirection to unwind jumper 145. Shaft 205 may be a variety of shapes andsizes, depending upon the size and shape of device 100 and/or pulley150. For example, in one implementation, shaft 205 may be cylindrical inshape and may be sized to accommodate the desired size of the core ofreel portion 200.

Conductive contacts 215 may electrically couple conductive wires 225 tooptical detector 155, via conductive portions 220 and wires 230, inorder to provide power to optical detector 155. For example, conductivewires 225 may provide electrical power or energy to conductive portions220. Conductive portions 220 may transfer the power to conductivecontacts 215, and conductive contacts 215 may transfer the power tooptical detector 155 via wires 230. Optical detector 155 may utilize thepower to energize components provided therein for measuring, e.g.,optical signals provided to or by jumper 145.

Conductive contacts 215 may include conductive materials (e.g., metals,plated metals, etc.) and may form circuits when they engage conductiveportions 220. Conductive contacts 215 may electrically couple to wires230 and may provide electrical power to optical detector 155, via wires230. Conductive portions 220 may be provided around an outer surface offixed shaft 205, and may be made from a conductive material such asmetals, plated metals, etc. Conductive portions 220 may engageconductive contacts 215 to form circuits and may be electrically coupledto wires 225 to provide electrical power from wires 225 to opticaldetector 155. Wires 225 and 230 may include any type of conductivematerial, such as metals (e.g., copper, aluminum, gold, etc.), platedmetals, etc.

Spring-loaded mechanism 235 may provide a mechanism that automaticallyrewinds jumper 145 onto reel portion 200 of pulley 150. For example, inone implementation, spring-loaded mechanism 235 may provide a constantrotational force on reel portion 200 in a direction that may wind jumper145 onto reel portion 200. A user of device 100 may pull jumper 145 fromhousing 105 to a desired length extending away from housing 150, e.g.,so that a network device may be measured and/or tested via maleconnector 130. Latch gear 140 may retain jumper 145 at the desiredlength by preventing the rotational force of spring-loaded mechanism 235from rewinding jumper 145 onto reel portion 200. If latch gear 140disengages jumper 145, the rotational force of spring-loaded mechanism235 may automatically rewind jumper 145 onto reel portion 200.

As shown in the second exemplary arrangement of FIG. 2B, pulley 150 mayinclude reel portion 200, fixed shaft 205, wires 230 supplying power tooptical detector 155, and/or spring-loaded mechanism 235, as describedabove in connection with FIG. 2A. Optical detector 155 may alternativelybe provided on fixed shaft 205 rather than reel portion 200, and may beprevented from rotating. Wires 230 may alternatively be directly coupledto optical detector 155. In such an arrangement, conductive contacts215, conductive portions 220, and conductive wires 225 may be omitted.

As further shown in FIG. 2B, one end of jumper 145 may include acollimator 240 that may optically communicate with optical detector 155.In one implementation, collimator 240 may connect to the core of reelportion 200 and may rotate with reel portion 200. Collimator 240 mayoptically communicate with optical detector 155 so that optical signalsfrom jumper 145 may be measured if collimator 240 aligns with orsubstantially aligns with optical detector 155. For example, collimator240 may align with optical detector 155 if jumper 145 is completelyunwound from reel portion 200. In other implementations, collimator 240may connect to fixed shaft 205 and may align with optical detector 155on fixed shaft 205. Collimator 240 may include a device that filters astream of light rays so that rays traveling parallel to a specifieddirection may be allowed through collimator 240.

Although FIGS. 2A and 2B show exemplary components of pulley 150, inother implementations, pulley 150 may contain fewer or additionalcomponents that may aid in storing jumper 145 and/or measuring opticalsignals from jumper 145. In still other implementations, one or morecomponents of pulley 150 may perform the tasks performed by othercomponents of device 150.

FIGS. 3A and 3B depict another exemplary device 300 in which systems andmethods described herein may be implemented. FIG. 3A depicts an externalfront view of device 300, and FIG. 3B depicts a partial internal frontview of device 300. Device 300 may include any device used to measureproperties of a conduit or another type of computation or communicationdevice, a thread or process running on one of these devices, and/or anobject executable by one of these devices. For example, in oneimplementation, device 300 may include an optical power meter thatmeasures a strength or power of an optical signal provided through aconduit. In other implementations, device 300 may include a photometer,a radiometer, etc.

As shown in FIG. 3A, device 300 may include a variety of components,such as a housing 305, control buttons 310, a display 315, a femalereceiver head 320, and/or a storage compartment 325. Housing 305 mayprotect the components of device 300 from outside elements. Controlbuttons 310 may permit a user to interact with device 300 to causedevice 300 to perform one or more operations. Display 315 may providevisual information to the user. For example, display 315 may provideinformation regarding a measurement result (e.g., “RESULT 1” or “RESULT2”) of female receiver head 320, a measurement result (e.g., “RESULT 1”or “RESULT 2”) of a jumper stored in storage compartment 325, etc.

Female receiver head 320 may be a point of attachment for a networkconduit (not shown) and may be a point of entry for a male networkconnector (not shown) provided at one end of the network conduit. Femalereceiver head 320 may permit measurement by device 300 of an opticalsignal provided to or by the network conduit. In one implementation, forexample, female receiver head 320 may function in a similar manner asfemale receiver head 120 of device 100, and may contain similarcomponents and/or features as female receiver head 120 of device 100.

Storage compartment 325 may provide storage for a jumper andcorresponding connectors (not shown). Although FIG. 3A shows storagecompartment 325 as including a hinged cover (e.g., similar to a batterystorage compartment), in other implementations, storage compartment 325may include other types of covers (e.g., a sliding cover, etc.).

As shown in FIG. 3B, device 300 may further include an optical detector330 corresponding to female receiver head 320, an opening 335 of storagecompartment 325, a jumper 340 coupled to a male connector on one end anda male or a female connector on another end, a receiver head 345 forreceiving the male/female connector of jumper 340, and/or an opticaldetector 350 corresponding to the male/female connector of jumper 340.

Optical detectors 330 and 350 may optically communicate with the malenetwork connector (not shown) and the female network connector (notshown), respectively, in order to measure the power of optical signalsprovided to or by these network devices. Optical detector 330 may becoupled to female receiver head 320, and optical detector 350 may becoupled to the male/female connector of jumper 340 via receiver head345. Optical detector 350 may optically communicate with the femalenetwork connector (not shown) via optical communication with the maleconnector of jumper 340, jumper 340, and the male/female connector ofjumper 340. In one implementation, for example, optical detectors 330and 350 may function in a similar manner as optical detectors 135 and155 of device 100, and may contain similar components and/or features asoptical detectors 135 and 155 of device 100.

Opening 335 of storage compartment 325 may be sized and shaped toaccommodate the desired length of jumper 340. For example, opening 335may be large enough to accommodate a jumper having a length that mayextend to and/or measure an optical signal provided to or by the femalenetwork connector.

The male connector of jumper 340 may connect to a female networkconnector (not shown) formerly connected to a male network connector(not shown) provided at one end of a network conduit. The male connectorof jumper 340 may permit measurement by device 300 of an optical signalprovided to or by the female network connector. In one implementation,for example, the male connector of jumper 340 may function in a similarmanner as male connector 130 of device 100, and may contain similarcomponents and/or features as male connector 130 of device 100.

The female/male connector of jumper 340 may couple jumper 340 to opticaldetector 350, and may permit optical communication between the femalenetwork connector and optical detector 350.

Jumper 340 may include a conduit for communicating data or informationfrom its male connector to optical detector 350. In one implementation,for example, jumper 340 may function in a similar manner as jumper 145of device 100, and may contain similar components and/or features asjumper 145 of device 100.

Although FIGS. 3A and 3B show exemplary components of device 300, inother implementations, device 300 may contain fewer or additionalcomponents that may provide optical signal measurement of multipleconnectors. For example, although FIGS. 3A and 3B show two opticaldetectors for device 300, in other implementations, device 300 mayinclude more than two optical detectors. In still other implementations,device 300 may include additional components such as a speaker toprovide audible information to a user of device 300, a microphone toreceive audible information from the user, a camera to enable the userto capture and/or store video and/or images (e.g., pictures). In stillfurther implementations, one or more components of device 300 mayperform the tasks performed by other components of device 300.

FIGS. 4A and 4B depict still another exemplary device 400 in whichsystems and methods described herein may be implemented. FIG. 4A depictsan external front view of device 400, and FIG. 4B depicts a partialinternal front view of device 400. Device 400 may include any deviceused to measure properties of a conduit or another type of computationor communication device, a thread or process running on one of thesedevices, and/or an object executable by one of these devices. Forexample, in one implementation, device 400 may include an optical powermeter that measures a strength or power of an optical signal providedthrough a conduit. In other implementations, device 400 may include aphotometer, a radiometer, etc.

As shown in FIG. 4A, device 400 may include a variety of components,such as a housing 405, control buttons 410, a display 415, a femalereceiver head 420, a receiver head 425, a receiver head 430, a jumper435 coupled to a male connector 440 on one end and a male or a femaleconnector 445 on another end, and/or a handle 450 that may connect tohousing 405 via arms 455 and 460. As shown in FIG. 4B, device 400 mayfurther include an optical detector 465 corresponding to female receiverhead 420, and/or an optical detector 470 corresponding to male/femaleconnector 445 of jumper 435.

Housing 405 may protect the components of device 400 from outsideelements. Control buttons 410 may permit a user to interact with device400 to cause device 400 to perform one or more operations. Display 415may provide visual information to the user. For example, display 415 mayprovide information regarding a measurement result (e.g., “RESULT 1” or“RESULT 2”) of female receiver head 420, a measurement result (e.g.,“RESULT 1” or “RESULT 2”) of male connector 440 of jumper 435, etc.

Female receiver head 420 may be a point of attachment for a networkconduit (not shown) and may be a point of entry for a male networkconnector (not shown) provided at one end of the network conduit. Femalereceiver head 420 may permit measurement by device 400 of an opticalsignal provided to or by the network conduit. In one implementation, forexample, female receiver head 420 may function in a similar manner asfemale receiver head 120 of device 100, and may contain similarcomponents and/or features as female receiver head 120 of device 100.

Receiver head 425 may provide an opening in housing 405 of device 400 tostore male connector 440 of jumper 435 if not in use. Receiver head 430may provide an opening in housing 405 of device 400 to store male/femaleconnector 445 of jumper 435 if not in use. Receiver head 430 may alsocouple optical detector 470 to male/female connector 445 of jumper 435.

Jumper 435 may include a conduit for communicating data or informationfrom male connector 440 to optical detector 470. In one implementation,for example, jumper 435 may function in a similar manner as jumper 145of device 100, and may contain similar components and/or features asjumper 145 of device 100.

Male connector 440 of jumper 435 may connect to a female networkconnector (not shown) formerly connected to a male network connector(not shown) provided at one end of a network conduit. Male connector 440may permit measurement by device 400 of an optical signal provided to orby the female network connector. In one implementation, for example,male connector 440 may function in a similar manner as male connector130 of device 100, and may contain similar components and/or features asmale connector 130 of device 100.

Female/male connector 445 may couple jumper 435 to optical detector 470,and may permit optical communication between the female networkconnector and optical detector 470 via male connector 440 and jumper435.

Optical detectors 465 and 470 may optically communicate with the malenetwork connector (not shown) and the female network connector (notshown), respectively, in order to measure the power of optical signalsprovided to or by these network devices. Optical detector 465 may becoupled to female receiver head 420, and optical detector 470 may becoupled to male/female connector 445 of jumper 435 via receiver head430. Optical detector 470 may optically communicate with the femalenetwork connector (not shown) via optical communication with maleconnector 440 of jumper 435, jumper 435, and male/female connector 445of jumper 435. In one implementation, for example, optical detectors 465and 470 may function in a similar manner as optical detectors 135 and155 of device 100, and may contain similar components and/or features asoptical detectors 135 and 155 of device 100.

Handle 450 may be sized and shaped to accommodate the desired length ofjumper 435. For example, handle 450 may be sized to accommodate a jumperhaving a length that may extend to and/or measure an optical signalprovided to or by the female network connector. As shown in FIGS. 4A and4B, arms 455 and 460 may extend away from and connect handle 450 tohousing 405. In one implementation, the lengths of arms 455 and 460 maysized to accommodate a jumper having a length that may extend to and/ormeasure an optical signal provided to or by the female networkconnector.

Although FIGS. 4A and 4B show exemplary components of device 400, inother implementations, device 400 may contain fewer or additionalcomponents that may provide optical signal measurement of multipleconnectors. For example, although FIGS. 4A and 4B show two opticaldetectors for device 400, in other implementations, device 400 mayinclude more than two optical detectors. In still other implementations,device 400 may include additional components such as a speaker toprovide audible information to a user of device 400, a microphone toreceive audible information from the user, a camera to enable the userto capture and/or store video and/or images (e.g., pictures). In stillfurther implementations, one or more components of device 400 mayperform the tasks performed by other components of device 400.

FIG. 5 is a diagram of exemplary components of devices 100/300/400. Asshown in FIG. 5, devices 100/300/400 may include processing logic 510,storage 520, a user interface 530, a communication interface 540, anantenna assembly 550, and an output information gatherer 560. Processinglogic 510 may include a processor, a microprocessor, an applicationspecific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array(FPGA), or the like. Storage 520 may include a random access memory(RAM), a read only memory (ROM), and/or another type of memory to storedata and instructions that may be used by processing logic 510 tocontrol operation of devices 100/300/400 and their components.

User interface 530 may include mechanisms for inputting information todevices 100/300/400 and/or for outputting information from devices100/300/400. Examples of input and output mechanisms might includebuttons (e.g., a joystick, control buttons 110/310/410 and/or keys of akeypad) to permit data and control commands to be input into devices100/300/400, a display (e.g., displays 115/315/415) to output visualinformation (e.g., information regarding measured optical signals),and/or optical detectors (e.g., optical detectors135/155/330/350/465/470) to output measured optical signals.

Communication interface 540 may include, for example, a transmitter thatmay convert baseband signals from processing logic 510 to radiofrequency (RF) signals and/or a receiver that may convert RF signals tobaseband signals. Alternatively, communication interface 540 may includea transceiver to perform functions of both a transmitter and a receiver.Communication interface 540 may connect to antenna assembly 550 fortransmission and reception of the RF signals. In one implementation, forexample, communication interface 540 may communicate with a network(e.g., a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN), atelephone network, such as the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN),an intranet, the Internet, or a combination of networks) or a networkcomponent (e.g., a personal computer, a laptop, or another type ofcomputation or communication device) to provide measured optical signals(e.g., to a database).

Output information gatherer 560 may obtain output information fromdevices 100/300/400. In one implementation, the output information maycorrespond to measured optical signals stored on devices 100/300/400 orreceived by devices 100/300/400. In this case, output informationgatherer 560 may include a media storage device (e.g., storage 520), ora communication device (e.g., communication interface 540) capable ofreceiving output information from another source (e.g., wired orwireless communication with an external media storage device). Inanother implementation, the output information may correspond to outputcaptured or retrieved by devices 100/300/400. In this case, outputinformation gatherer 560 may include optical detectors (e.g., opticaldetectors 135/155/330/350/465/470) that may record measured opticalsignals. The captured output information may or may not be stored in amedia storage device (e.g., storage 520).

As will be described in detail below, devices 100/300/400 describedherein may perform certain operations relating to optical signalmeasurement. Devices 100/300/400 may perform these operations inresponse to processing logic 510 executing software instructions of anapplication contained in a computer-readable medium, such as storage520. A computer-readable medium may be defined as a physical or logicalmemory device and/or carrier wave.

The software instructions may be read into storage 520 from anothercomputer-readable medium or from another device via communicationinterface 540. The software instructions contained in storage 520 maycause processing logic 510 to perform processes described above and/orbelow. Alternatively, hardwired circuitry may be used in place of or incombination with software instructions to implement processes describedherein. Thus, implementations described herein are not limited to anyspecific combination of hardware circuitry and software.

Although FIG. 5 shows exemplary components of devices 100/300/400, inother implementations, devices 100/300/400 may contain fewer oradditional components than depicted in FIG. 5. For example, in oneimplementation, antenna assembly 550 may include one or more antennas totransmit and receive RF signals over the air. Antenna assembly 550 mayreceive RF signals from communication interface 540 and may transmitthem over the air, and may receive RF signals over the air and mayprovide them to communication interface 540. In still otherimplementations, one or more components of devices 100/300/400 depictedin FIG. 5 may perform the tasks performed by other components of devices100/300/400.

FIGS. 6A and 6B depict exemplary measurement of an optical signal(s)with device 100, although devices 300 and 400 may also be used in theexemplary measurement. As shown in FIG. 6A, a network device (e.g., anoptical patch panel 600) may include adaptors 610, a female networkconnector 620, and/or a male network connector 630. A single adaptor 610may couple female network connector 620 to male network connector 630 sothat the connectors may optically communicate with each other. Althoughoptical patch panel 600 shows a single female network connector and asingle male network connector, in other implementations, panel 600 mayinclude more female and male network connectors.

In order to measure an optical signal(s) from female network connector620 and/or male network connector 630 with device 100, male networkconnector 630 may be disconnected from adaptor 610 and may be providedwithin female receiver head 120 of device, as shown in FIG. 6B. Maleconnector 130 of jumper 145 may be extended away from device 100 and maybe provided within adaptor 610 at the location vacated by male networkconnector 630. At this point female network connector 620 and malenetwork connector 630 may optically communicate with device 100, and maybe ready for measurement.

A user may select a measurement to perform (e.g., via control buttons110), and device 100 may perform optical signal measurements of femalenetwork connector 620 and/or male network connector 630. For example, inone implementation, optical detector 135 of device 100 may provide themeasured power of male network connector 630 to display 115, and display115 may provide visual information (e.g., “RESULT 1” or “RESULT 2”)indicating the measured power. In other implementations, opticaldetector 155 of device 100 may provide the measured power of femalenetwork connector 620 to display 115, and display 115 may provide visualinformation (e.g., “RESULT 1” or “RESULT 2”) indicating the measuredpower. In still other implementations, optical detectors 135 and 155 mayprovide the measured power of the optical signals to processing logic ofdevice 100 (e.g., processing logic 510), and the processing logic maycompare, perform statistics on, transmit (e.g., via communicationinterface 540 to a database external to device 100), etc. the measuredpower of the optical signals. The comparison or statistical results maybe displayed, stored, and/or transmitted by device 100.

For example, in one exemplary implementation, device 100 may compare themeasured power of female network connector 620 to the measured power ofmale network connector 630 to determine which connector (or if bothconnectors) are the source of a signaling problem in the network. Avariety of statistics may be performed on the measured powers. Forexample, the measured powers may be statistically compared to powersmeasured at other connection points of the network, or may bestatistically compared to previously measured powers at the sameconnection point of the network (e.g., this may help calculate signaldegradation over time).

If the measurement is complete, male connector 130 of jumper 145 may beremoved from adaptor 610 and may be automatically retracted into device100 (e.g., via spring-loaded mechanism 235). Male network connector 630may be returned to adaptor 610 to optically communicate with femalenetwork connector 620.

Such an arrangement may measure two optical signals (e.g., one fromfemale network connector 620 and one from male network connector 630)simultaneously. This may simplify the optical measurement procedure to asingle step, which may save time and money. Such an arrangement also maynot require the technician to remember measured values or to find ajumper, and may permit quicker identification of a transmission problemin the network.

FIG. 7 depicts a flowchart of an exemplary process 700 capable of beingperformed by devices 100/300/400. The process of FIG. 7 may be locatedwithin devices 100/300/400 (e.g., within storage 520) and/or may beaccessible by devices 100/300/400. As shown, process 700 may receive amale network connector with a measurement device (block 710). Forexample, in one implementation described above in connection with FIGS.6A and 6B, in order to measure an optical signal(s) from male networkconnector 630 with device 100, male network connector 630 may bedisconnected from adaptor 610 and may be provided within female receiverhead 120 of device 100.

Process 700 may couple a male connector of the measurement device to afemale network connector (block 720). For example, in one implementationdescribed above in connection with FIGS. 6A and 6B, in order to measurean optical signal(s) from female network connector 620, male connector130 of jumper 145 may be extended away from device 100 and may beprovided within adaptor 610 at the location vacated by male networkconnector 630. At this point, female network connector 620 and malenetwork connector 630 may optically communicate with device 100, and maybe ready for measurement.

As further shown in FIG. 7, process 700 may simultaneously measureoutputs of the male network connector and the female network connector(block 730). For example, in one implementation described above inconnection with FIGS. 6A and 6B, a user may select a measurement toperform (e.g., via control buttons 110), and device 100 may performoptical signal measurements of female network connector 620 and/or malenetwork connector 630.

Process 700 may display, store, and/or transmit the measured outputs(block 740). For example, in one implementation described above inconnection with FIGS. 6A and 6B, optical detector 135 of device 100 mayprovide the measured power of male network connector 630 to display 115,and display 115 may provide visual information (e.g., “RESULT 1” or“RESULT 2”) indicating the measured power. Optical detector 155 ofdevice 100 may provide the measured power of female network connector620 to display 115, and display 115 may provide visual information(e.g., “RESULT 1” or “RESULT 2”) indicating the measured power.

As further shown in FIG. 7, process 700 may compare and/or performstatistics on the measured outputs (block 750). For example, in oneimplementation described above in connection with FIGS. 6A and 6B,optical detectors 135 and 155 may provide the measured power of theoptical signals to processing logic of device 100 (e.g., processinglogic 510), and the processing logic may compare, perform statistics on,transmit (e.g., via communication interface 540 to a database externalto device 100), etc. the measured power of the optical signals.

Process 700 may display, store, and/or transmit the comparison and/orstatistical results (block 760). For example, in one implementationdescribed above in connection with FIGS. 6A and 6B, the comparison orstatistical results may be displayed, stored, and/or transmitted bydevice 100.

Systems and methods described herein may provide an optical signalmeasurement device that includes two optical detectors for measuring twooptical signals simultaneously. For example, in one implementation, afemale receiver head of the optical signal measurement device may beused to measure an optical signal provided to or by a male connector ofa network conduit. A male connector connected to the optical signalmeasurement device may be used to measure a female connector of thenetwork conduit. The systems and methods may simplify the opticalmeasurement procedure to a single step, which may save time. The systemsand methods also may not require the technician to remember measuredvalues or to find a jumper, and may permit quicker identification of atransmission problem in a network conduit.

The foregoing description provides illustration and description, but isnot intended to be exhaustive or to limit the embodiments to the preciseform disclosed. Modifications and variations are possible in light ofthe above teachings or may be acquired from practice of the invention.

For example, while a series of acts has been described with regard tothe flowchart of FIG. 7, the order of the acts may differ in otherimplementations consistent with the embodiments described herein.Further, non-dependent acts may be performed in parallel. In otherimplementations, the receiver heads exposed outside the housings ofdevices described herein may be provided with covers or caps to keepthem clean if not in use. In still other implementations, the devicesdescribed herein may include a variety of connector interfaces that maycommunicate with a variety of connector types (e.g., LC, FC, ST, SC,biconic, ESCON, FICON, FDDI, loopback, Opti-Jack, MT-RJ, D4, MTP, MU,SMA, etc. type connectors).

Embodiments, as described above, may be implemented in many differentforms of software, firmware, and hardware in the implementationsillustrated in the figures. The actual software code or specializedcontrol hardware used to implement embodiments described herein is notlimiting of the invention. Thus, the operation and behavior of theembodiments were described without reference to the specific softwarecode--it being understood that one would be able to design software andcontrol hardware to implement the embodiments based on the descriptionherein.

No element, act, or instruction used in the present application shouldbe construed as critical or essential to the invention unless explicitlydescribed as such. Also, as used herein, the article “a” is intended toinclude one or more items. Where only one item is intended, the term“one” or similar language is used. Further, the phrase “based on” isintended to mean “based, at least in part, on” unless explicitly statedotherwise.

1. A method comprising: connecting a measurement device to a malenetwork connector of a network conduit; connecting the measurementdevice to a female network connector of the network conduit, the femalenetwork connector being capable of communicating with the male networkconnector; and measuring outputs of the male network connector and thefemale network connector with the measurement device.
 2. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising at least one of: displaying the measuredoutputs with the measurement device; storing the measured outputs withthe measurement device; or transmitting the measured outputs with themeasurement device.
 3. The method of claim 1, further comprising atleast one of: comparing the measured outputs with the measurementdevice; or performing a statistical analysis on the measured outputswith the measurement device.
 4. The method of claim 3, furthercomprising at least one of: displaying results of the comparison orstatistical analysis with the measurement device; storing results of thecomparison or statistical analysis with the measurement device; ortransmitting results of the comparison or statistical analysis with themeasurement device.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the measurementdevice comprises an optical power meter and the measuring outputs of themale network connector and the female network connector comprises:simultaneously measuring optical powers of the male network connectorand the female network connector with the optical power meter.
 6. Adevice comprising: a female receiver head capable of receiving a malenetwork connector of a network conduit; a first optical detector capableof optically communicating with the male network connector, via thefemale receiver head, for measuring an output of the male networkconnector; a jumper conduit including a male connector capable ofconnecting to a female network connector of the network conduit; asecond optical detector capable of optically communicating with thefemale network connector, via the jumper conduit and the male connectorof the jumper conduit, for measuring an output of the female networkconnector; and a mechanism for storing the jumper conduit and the maleconnector of the jumper conduit.
 7. The device of claim 6, wherein thedevice comprises an optical power meter. 8 . The device of claim 6,wherein the female receiver head is capable of receiving at least oneof: a Local Connector (LC) male network connector; a Ferrule Connector(FC) male network connector; a Straight Tip (ST) male network connector;a Standard Connector (SC) male network connector; a biconic male networkconnector; an Enterprise Systems Connection (ESCON) male networkconnector; a Fiber Connectivity (FICON) male network connector; aFiber-Distributed Data Interface (FDDI) male network connector; aloopback male network connector; an Opti-Jack male network connector; aMechanical Transfer Registered Jack (MT-RJ) male network connector; a D4male network connector; a MTP male network connector; a MU male networkconnector; or a SMA male network connector.
 9. The device of claim 6,wherein the first and second optical detectors comprise at least one of:photon detectors; thermal detectors; photoconductive detectors;photovoltaic detectors; or photoemissive detectors.
 10. The device ofclaim 6, wherein the male connector of the jumper conduit is capable ofconnecting to at least one of: a Local Connector (LC) female networkconnector; a Ferrule Connector (FC) female network connector; a StraightTip (ST) female network connector; a Standard Connector (SC) femalenetwork connector; a biconic female network connector; an EnterpriseSystems Connection (ESCON) female network connector; a FiberConnectivity (FICON) female network connector; a Fiber-Distributed DataInterface (FDDI) female network connector; a loopback female networkconnector; an Opti-Jack female network connector; a Mechanical TransferRegistered Jack (MT-RJ) female network connector; a D4 female networkconnector; a MTP female network connector; a MU female networkconnector; or a SMA female network connector.
 11. The device of claim 6,wherein the storage mechanism comprises: a pulley for automaticallyrewinding and storing the jumper conduit within the device.
 12. Thedevice of claim 11, further comprising: a latch gear for retaining thejumper conduit at a desired unwound position and preventing the pulleyfrom automatically rewinding the jumper conduit.
 13. The device of claim11, wherein the pulley comprises: a fixed shaft; a reel portionrotatably connected to the fixed shaft; and a spring-loaded mechanismconnected to the reel portion and applying a rewinding force to thejumper conduit.
 14. The device of claim 13, wherein the second opticaldetector connects to the reel portion of the pulley.
 15. The device ofclaim 14, further comprising: conductive contacts connected toconductive portions of the fixed shaft and providing electrical power tothe second optical detector.
 16. The device of claim 13, wherein thesecond optical detector connects to the fixed shaft of the pulley, andthe pulley further comprises: a collimator connected to the reel portionof the pulley and to an end of jumper conduit for opticallycommunicating the jumper conduit with the second optical detector. 17.The device of claim 6, wherein the storage mechanism comprises: astorage compartment provided within a housing of the device for storingthe jumper conduit and male connector of the jumper conduit.
 18. Thedevice of claim 17, wherein the storage compartment includes a cover forprotecting the jumper conduit and the male connector of the jumperconduit provided therein.
 19. The device of claim 6, wherein the storagemechanism comprises: a handle including arms that extend away from andconnect to a housing of the device, wherein the jumper conduit iscapable of being wound around and stored on the arms; and a storagereceiver head providing an opening in the housing of the device to storethe male connector of the jumper conduit.
 20. The device of claim 6,further comprising: control buttons permitting interaction with thedevice to cause the device to perform one or more operations.
 21. Thedevice of claim 6, further comprising: a display capable of providingvisual information regarding the output of the male network connectorand the output of the female network connector.
 22. A device comprising:a first detector capable of communicating with a first networkconnector; a second detector capable of communicating with a secondnetwork connector; and processing logic to: measure outputs of the firstand second network connectors.
 23. The device of claim 22, wherein theprocessing logic is further configured to at least one of: compare themeasured outputs; or perform a statistical analysis on the measuredoutputs.
 24. The device of claim 23, wherein the processing logic isfurther configured to at least one of: display the measured outputs orresults of the comparison or statistical analysis; store the measuredoutputs or results of the comparison or statistical analysis; ortransmit the measured outputs or results of the comparison orstatistical analysis.
 25. A system comprising: means for connecting ameasurement device to a male network connector of a network conduit;means for connecting the measurement device to a female networkconnector of the network conduit, the female network connector beingcapable of communicating with the male network connector; and means forsimultaneously measuring outputs of the male network connector and thefemale network connector with the measurement device.